On Friday afternoon, my magic touch didn’t seem to solve the problem. Taking the lid off the toilet, I noticed that the handle and lever was extremely loose. Making the needed correction was going to be a piece of cake. I immediately attempted to tighten the plastic nut that held the handle in place. I turned and I turned, but for whatever reason, the nut would not thread on the plastic threading. I was puzzled. Nothing seemed broken or stripped, but it simply didn’t work. We obviously needed to replace the part.
When it comes to plumbing, my skill set is about that of a five-year-old, but I thought that surely I had the ability to thread a nut on a bolt. That is all I needed to do to solve the problem. However, why leave anything to chance? I made a picture of the part that needed to be replaced using my cellphone. I also made note of the fact that the brand was Kohler.
As it turned out, Home Depot had many choices. I picked out one and decided to compare it with the picture I had captured on my cellphone. Guess what? The pictures didn’t match. I thought it would probably work, but why take a chance? The new one had a metal level. The old one had a plastic level and they seemed to be shaped differently. I replaced the part back on the rack. It didn’t seem like a perfect match.
With the picture on display in one hand, I inventoried the selection again. Then I saw it. The name “Kohler” was prominently displayed on the package. Surely, that would have to work. I did a careful analysis. The parts looked the same. Actually, they were the same shape, but they didn’t look the same. The color of the old part was white. The color of the new part was black. Did color make a difference? How could it?
You’re probably thinking I’m “Looney tunes” to even consider the possibility that the two parts could be different, but I took the time to carefully compare the picture to the part that I held in my hand. They had to be the same, even though they were a different color.
The good news is that it would only take me about two minutes to replace the part. At least, I operated on that principal. Because of space issues, it seemed more difficult to get the new part in place than it did to take the old one out. However, eventually I had everything lined up. Breathing a sigh of relief that this was almost a done deal, I started threading the nut on the plastic threads. Are you kidding me? It didn’t work. I was turning the nut clockwise and it refused to thread. How could this be happening? This was a simply process. Why was I having such difficulty?
Operating on the premises, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, and try again.” Finally, out of a sense of desperation, I opted to try turning the nut counter-clockwise. I was speechless. It was actually threading.
After getting the new handle and lever installed, I opted to try the plastic nut on the plastic lever I had taken out. I couldn’t believe it. Threading it counter-clockwise was the key to tightening the handle in place. Who would have thought?
I walked back into the living area and announced to the Honorary General that we really hadn’t needed a new handle. We just need for me to turn the turn the plastic nut counter-clockwise.
Looking up, the Honorary General and the other lady said at the same time: “Righty tighty lefty loosy?” Are you kidding me? I had never heard that expression in my life. How did they both know it? Obviously the expression refers to the threads on a screw, nut, bolt, etc. To tighten, you turn to the right (clockwise). To loosen, you turn toward the left (counter clockwise).
It took a Google search for me to find it, but the small print said, “A few exceptions exist, notably old propane cylinders and some pipe fittings.” Obviously, sometimes it pays to read the fine print.
All My Best!
Don